The German speedrunner Muftaay has already set the world records for the fastest runs in Elden Ring multiple times. We at MeinMMO spoke with him and inquired about speedrunning.
We all play video games for various reasons. The most common is, of course, fun, but there are people who enjoy relaxing with games, expressing themselves creatively, or seeking a challenge to push their skill limits. This includes speedrunners, for instance, who want to finish games as quickly as possible.
Over time, a real speedrunning scene developed in gaming, with its own rules and a community. At large events like “Games Done Quick”, speedrunners collect millions of dollars in donations for charity each year.
We spoke with the German speedrunner Muftaay, who currently holds one of the world records in Elden Ring, about speedrunning and gathered tips for beginners from him.
What is speedrunning?
MeinMMO: Hi, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers?
Muftaay: Hello, I’m Martin, known as Muftaay on the internet. I am 31 years old and come from northern Germany. Gaming has always been a part of my life since I discovered the game Tetris on the Gameboy at age 5. From C64, through NES, SNES, and so on, to PC. I’ve experienced everything, and nothing has changed to this day.
MeinMMO: Speedrunning is a term many know in gaming, but not everyone is familiar with it. Can you explain to our readers what it entails as a speedrunner?
Muftaay: Speedrunning means, broadly speaking, completing a game in the fastest way possible. Depending on the game and category, runs can differ from a few seconds to several hours.
The rules vary from game to game and can be very detailed, but the generally accepted rules are as follows:
- A run must be recorded from start to finish without interruptions, and no pauses may be made.
- The run’s time must be clearly visible, either through external programs like Livesplit, or by showing the time at the end of the save state.
- No cheating. This ranges from using disallowed hardware to editing runs.
MeinMMO: You mentioned the categories earlier. Why are there different categories, and how do they differ?
Muftaay: In pretty much every game, there are the categories Any% and Any% Glitchless, along with often other categories like 100% or similar. The reason for this is simply to give the game more depth. Some players prefer long runs, some short, some with glitches, some without glitches, and so on.
- Any% means completing the game in the fastest way possible, regardless of how. Here, as long as not specified otherwise in the rules, any glitch may be used to reach the goal.
- Any% Glitchless means the same as Any%, only without glitches or bugs.
- 100% means collecting every item, defeating every boss, etc. So basically completing everything in the game.
MeinMMO: How “official” is all of this? Is there a sort of central system that recognizes records?
Muftaay: Officially, it all runs through Speedrun.com. This website lists all games and their records. For each game, there is a group of moderators responsible for recognizing runs and verifying their accuracy.
When a run is submitted, a mod checks that run. Only after a mod confirms the run is it allowed on the leaderboard.
“I can warm up for just about any situation in the game”
MeinMMO: How did you start speedrunning?
Muftaay: I have always found speedrunning very interesting, but I never really motivated myself to try it myself. When Elden Ring came out, I finished the game very quickly, but I wanted more from it. Since I wasn’t interested in New Game+ in Elden Ring, I looked for other ways to get more out of the game.
So I went to speedrun.com/eldenring to watch a speedrun and possibly attempt it. At that time, however, the leaderboards were still closed because the game was too new.
So I searched on twitch.tv for known speedrunners and, of course, found Distortion2, who I already knew from many other games. I watched him every day and observed how the Any%-category in Elden Ring developed.
Then at some point, I started practicing the run and created many save states for practice. Initially, I set very low goals for myself, like achieving a run under 2 hours, and from there I improved step by step.
I started with the Any% category because it is usually the most popular in almost every game. Moreover, the Any% record at that time was around 40 minutes, which was a good length for me.
I actually didn’t have any major difficulties since I approached it very casually. However, I would say the biggest problem was recording everything. With timers and so on, because you really need a relatively good PC for that. Especially since the performance in Elden Ring wasn’t the best.
MeinMMO: Do you prepare for the runs in any special way?
Muftaay: Usually, I start my streams with about half an hour of warm-up. I have a folder with 120 save states, which means that I can warm up for just about any situation in the game. Due to the precise timing of certain glitches like Chainsaw [More info below], warming up my fingers is very important before a run.
MeinMMO: What special techniques and strategies do you find particularly exciting in speedrunning?
Muftaay: My favorite trick, which many will probably hate me for, is actually the “Quit out” (laughs). Anyone who has ever seen a Souls-game speedrun will be familiar with the Quit out. It is simply going back to the main menu.
A Quit out has many advantages, here are a few:
- Enemies are reset to their original positions.
- Animations, like opening doors or player falls, are skipped.
- If you fall to your death, you can save yourself with a Quit out.
- You can teleport out of boss rooms.
It interrupts the flow of the game and is essentially just about a 10-second loading screen, which viewers don’t usually like due to their frequency.
However, Quit outs are indispensable for speedrunners due to the mentioned advantages. A Quit out in Elden Ring is a sequence of 7 key presses, and this sequence must be callable on reflex at any time. I can’t explain why exactly, but I somehow find this variety and the quick pressing fascinating, and I love pressing these 7 keys in what feels like 0.1 seconds (laughs).
Another interesting trick is the so-called “Chainsaw Glitch.” It is currently by far the fastest method to complete the game. Here, the player is again required to execute a sequence of keys, this time 9 keys. And this time, it’s not just about pressing them as quickly as possible, but with specific timing.
The 9 keys must be pressed within about 0.5 seconds, but there must be a short pause of about 0.1 to 0.2 seconds between the first and second key presses. Additionally, the enemy must be facing precisely 180° behind the player while the sequence of keys is executed.
When the Chainsaw Glitch was discovered, the community was sure that this glitch could not be executed without the help of external programs due to the mentioned difficulties. Of course, there were players who viewed this as a challenge and learned to execute the Chainsaw Glitch with a relatively high success rate. Once it became clear that the glitch could also be executed without assistance, I decided to learn the glitch as well.
What the future of speedrunning brings
MeinMMO: What are your future plans regarding speedrunning? Do you have any new games on your radar, or will you stay with Elden Ring?
Muftaay: So my plan is to remain the world record holder in the categories Any% and All Remembrances. As soon as one of the records is broken, I will go for it again. Just today, I reclaimed the Any% record.
This may sound a bit cocky now, but I am confident that the Any% record will hold for at least 1-2 months. The run was just so good, almost everything fell into place. Well, unless a new trick is found that saves 10+ seconds (laughs).
Elden Ring is the game I built my stream around, and I love the community I have built with it so far. However, I can’t stay with Elden Ring forever.
Furthermore, as silly as it may sound, it is also quite exhausting to do a speedrun every day, so I have started playing other games like Death’s Door or Hollow Knight.
But to be completely honest, I can’t say for sure what I will play on my channel in the future; it will show, but most likely it will involve speedruns.
MeinMMO: What categories would you like to try or avoid altogether?
Muftaay: I am currently the world record holder in the two main categories Any% and All Remembrances. Every time my record is broken, I come back and reclaim it. A third category would be too much for me. Instead, I try to casually tune in to the speedruns of other games like Dark Souls Remastered or Cuphead on stream.
In general, I’m not a fan of very long speedruns, so I would never attempt the “All Achievements” category, in which you have to obtain all of the game’s achievements. In this category, you have to complete the game twice, among other tasks, and collect certain weapons and ashes scattered throughout the game. The world record for this is around 3 hours.
MeinMMO: What tips would you give our readers who are interested in speedrunning?
Muftaay:
- Don’t be afraid. Speedrunning is much easier than you initially think! I’m not an incredibly skilled gamer or anything; I also thought that it was impossible for me to ever get a world record in a Souls game.
- Copy the current world record run and make as many save states as possible along the way. Being able to train certain bosses at any time is worth its weight in gold!
- Set simple goals! If the world record is 30 minutes, try to achieve a run under 2 hours after some training, then under 1:30 hours, and so on. The initial time spent speedrunning was the most fun for me because you could always see progress.
We thank Muftaay and wish him continued success in his speedruns.
However, not all speedrunners are fair and play by the established rules:
Minecraft: Speedrunner admits to cheating, but it was “just a mistake”
